15 Months - Ryker

It's been a busy few months (hence the lack of blog posts) in the Marzen household. Despite his best efforts, we've managed to keep our daredevil, Ryker, alive for 15 months. Ryker does everything he can to keep up with his sister. He runs everywhere, only occasionally stopping to pick up a ball, eat a snack, or share a hug or high five. His quickly growing vocabulary includes about 50-60 words now as well as the occasional 2-3 word sentence. A few weeks ago he told me he "want to dance". I was shocked and of course obliged with his favorite Bubble Guppies song. To aid in his attempt to keep up with Ilyana he eats pretty much anything at anytime. He loves to use a spoon and fork and also loves to use an open cup to drink from when we're feeling brave. He's still nursing twice a day, which neither of us are in any hurry to give up. He absolutely loves our new kitten, Lucina (Lucy), although he is currently banned from touching her until he learns to be more gentle. We moved Ryker and Ilyana into the same room a little over a week ago which they have been loving! They both sleep from about 7/7:30 pm to 7 am. Grandma Connie is going to paint the room for them this weekend and then we're going to make it Pikachu themed, which I have no doubt they will both love. Ryker's favorite activities these days include: dancing, coloring, watching Bubble Guppies, playing with blocks, balls, cars, and playing with his pretend kitchen. I love my spunky, smart boy and I can't wait to see how he continues to grow this year!

Ryker turns 1!

A late happy birthday to my baby boy! My not so little 8.5 pound baby now weighs a whopping 20 lbs 9.5 oz (the same as big sister). Ryker has spent this past year doing everything he can to keep up with big sis. He's running and climbing everywhere he can, he can say 19 different words (for comparison, Ilyana had maybe 3-4 words at a year), he's an excellent eater, and an excellent sleeper. The biggest difference between Ryker and his sister though is his personality. This guy is wild. Physically he's pretty rough and tough, but he wears his emotions on his sleeve and is very expressive. This kid is hilarious, the expressions that he makes make me laugh all the time. He currently really enjoys playing outside, especially with bubbles, playing with balls, blocks, cars, cause and effect type toys, and reading books. He loves all types of food, but particularly likes fruit and goldfish. He's still nursing, however yesterday he only nursed 3 times so I have a feeling our nursing journey may be coming to an end. At night he goes to bed around 6:30 and usually sleeps until 6:30 or 7 the next morning. He's still taking 2 naps a day as well.
For Ryker's birthday we actually ended up being kind of busy! We enjoyed some doughnuts in the morning, he napped, he went to a friends house for a while so I could go to a counseling appointment, he came home and napped, opened a gift from great grandpa and grandma, had supper (lasagna and a brownie for dessert), opened a present from grandma and grandpa, and then he went to bed! He seemed to enjoy the day and we're looking forward to celebrating more this weekend with some family and close friends!

Ilyana turns 2!

My baby girl is 2! I feel like this year has gone even faster than the first year. Ilyana is looking and acting more and more like a little girl and less like a baby, it's bitter sweet. On one hand, it makes me sad realizing how fast our time with her is going, on the other hand, I'm so excited for everything that her future holds. I've said it many times, but Ilyana's love, kindness, and thoughtfulness humbles me everyday. The other day she saw me get Ryker out of the bath and without me even asking she set aside the book she was looking at and grabbed me a diaper for him. I was just astounded that she was so observant to see a need and fulfill it. God has some big things in store for this girl. I'm proud to be her mommy. Over the past few months Ilyana's vocabulary has really taken off. She has probably between 75-100 words that she uses and is learning new words on a seemingly daily basis. She still babbles quite a bit, although she seems to know what she's saying, and she has said quite a few sentences. She is currently Pokemon obsessed. She loves watching the Pokemon TV show, playing a Pokemon video game we have, and sleeps with her Pikachu, Pichu, and Dedenne stuffed animals at night. She's also obsessed with stickers and tattoos, baby dolls, Bruno Mars, brushing her teeth, playing outside, and animals. She is still an excellent eater and loves to eat meat that she gets to dip in ketchup, berries of any kind, steamed veggies, yogurt, and cereal. She's also still a great sleeper. She usually naps from about 1-4/4:30 and sleeps at night from 7:30-6:30.
For Ilyana's birthday Jake and I took her out to lunch, just the 3 of us, last weekend and then went to Target and let her pick out a present (she choose a new puzzle!). For her actual birthday we started the morning with some doughnuts for breakfast. Then we went to the Coralville Children's museum with Grandma Ray, cousin Lilah, Ryker, and our friend Jenny and her son Liam. After lunch in the food court (chicfila for the birthday girl) we headed home for naps. After nap time great grandma and great grandpa Hansen stopped by to drop off a present and then we had supper with daddy (mac and cheese, hot dogs, blueberries, and raspberries). We ended the day with Grandma and Grandpa Marzen dropping by to give Ilyana a Pikachu balloon (which Ilyana insisted on including in our nightly dance party)! I think the birthday girl had a great day!

11 months - Ryker

It seems like over the past couple of weeks my baby boy has suddenly become a toddler! Ryker is now walking full time, even running to keep up with (or run away from) his sister. They love to play together so much. They really are each others best friend. They love to play peekaboo, chase each other, and copy each other. It's so much fun to see them together. The day that Ryker mastered walking he also learned several new words, it's as though he was waiting to figure out walking before saying any of them. He can now say: Dada, Mama, no, all done, yay, hi, and book. He also loves to fake cough, he thinks it's rather hilarious. Over the past month Ryker has also started interacting with us more when he plays. He likes to hand us toys to play with or hand us books to read, or point out light fixtures, those fascinate him. It's nice having a little glimpse into his mind. His favorite book right now is Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. Reading (or reciting from memory) that book almost always calms him down. His other favorite activity that usually calms him down is playing pat-a-cake. Ilyana usually enjoys joining us with that too. I'm particularly thankful that over this past month Ryker has finally started consistently sleeping through the night, praise the Lord. He usually goes to bed around 6:30 and is up around 7. He's still taking two naps a day as well around 9:30 and 1:30. A few weeks ago we all caught the stomach flu that has been going around which took a huge toll on Ryker's appetite but he continued nursing well and has slowly but surely started getting back into eating solid foods again. His favorite foods are any type of fruit (especially blueberries), steamed veggies, beef, and yogurt. He also really likes the pouches of baby food that the kids sometimes get as a snack. He will try to tackle Ilyana and take hers if he doesn't have his own. Ryker has quite the personality and I'm excited to continue seeing him grow and develop as he nears his first birthday!

Top 10 favorite kids books

Ilyana has loved reading since she was itty bitty and Ryker has recently started loving books too. He will walk up to us and hand us books to read all day long. Having a background in theatre, I love to make up fun voices and give each story it's own individual rhythm. We have lots of fun with story time. Here's a list of our current favorites:

1. More Blueberries - Susan Musgrave (Buy it here!)

This book is a cute story all about, you guessed it, blueberries! It follows a brother and sister pair and all the different ways they eat and incorporate blueberries into their day. The rhymes are fun, and the pictures are cute. After checking this book out from the library about a million times we finally bought this book for the kids this Christmas. This is probably the kids absolute favorite book, so much so that we're planning on making it the theme of their birthday party this year!

2. Little Blue Truck - Alice Schertle (Buy it here!)

The kids received this book for Christmas and it has quickly become a favorite (particularly of Ilyana's). This adorable book is all about a little blue truck and his dump truck brother. Little blue is sweet and kind to all of his animal friends whereas the dump doesn't have time to be kind. Dump quickly finds himself in need of help and learns an important lesson in kindness. This books rhythm makes it one of my favorites to read to the kids. As an added bonus, it teaches several animal sounds!

3. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom - Bill Martin Jr. & John Archambault (Buy it here!)

This classic book is actually Ryker's bedtime book. You're bound to have this book memorized by the fifth time through. This book is perfect for all ages, teaching rhythm and rhyme to little babies and the letters of the alphabet to toddlers. The bright, colorful illustrations are just the icing on the cake!

4. Goodnight moon - Margaret Wise Brown (Buy it here!)

Another classic and another bedtime story, this time for Ilyana. This cute little story helps little ones say goodnight to everything in the beautifully depicted room. Through months of reading, it has taught Ilyana some simple words such as "moon", "bear", and "balloon". This book has been loved enough that we're on our second copy already.

5. Barnyard Dance - Sandra Boynton (Buy it here!)

Let's be honest, any book by Sandra Boynton is excellent, however this one is probably our favorite. This book, filled with rhythm and rhyme, follows the animals on a farm as they dance to the beat and make you want to get up and dance along with them!

6. The Pout Pout Fish - Deborah Dieson (Buy it here!)

This was one of Ilyana's first favorite books. The possibility for character voices makes this book fun to read. The Pout Pout Fish follows a grumpy fish around the ocean floor as he talks to his friends about his sour mood, finally at the end of the book a new fish turns his frown upside down and turns him into a kiss kiss fish!

7. Bubble Guppies - Mary Tillworth (Buy it here!)

Both kids are absolutely obsessed with the Bubble Guppies so it only makes sense that they would love books about their favorite characters! These books follow Oona, Nonny, Goby, Deema, Gil, Molly, and Bubble Puppy on some of the adventures they have in the TV series. The books aren't particularly well written compared to some of our other favorites, but they are still fun to read and are asked for often.

8. Brown Bear Brown Bear - Bill Martin Jr. & Eric Carle (Buy it here!)

Another classic favorite. Brown Bear Brown Bear explores several different animals and their colors. I appreciate that this book looks at colors one at a time without overwhelming the page with several different colors. The beautiful imagery and singsong text makes this book one that we will reread over and over again.

9. Dog's Colorful Day - Emma Dodd (Buy it here!)

We don't actually own this book yet, but we recently checked it out from the library and Ilyana was asking for it to be read several times a day. This cute book follows Dog on a day of messy adventure. It teaches both colors and counting along with being fun to read. I imagine we will be adding this book to our collection very soon.

10. Quiet Loud - Leslie Patricelli (Buy it here!)

This is another favorite library book. Patricelli has several cute books describing opposites that we have enjoyed, Quiet Loud being our favorite. It has been a fun way to teach my kiddos the difference between whispering and yelling, yelling being their favorite. As an added bonus, the pictures and examples are cheeky and cute.

What are some of your toddler's favorite books?

Volcanoes and stress

When I don't deal with stress my natural tendency is to act like a volcano. The pressure builds and builds and builds as I grin and bear it until I hit maximum capacity and I explode into a giant mess only to have the cycle start all over again. Obviously being a volcano is dangerous and unhealthy so it is important to find ways to blow off a little steam (de-stress), set up protective measures (avoid stressful triggers), and learn the signs of an impending explosion (identify triggers). Here are some of the things I have learned to do to avoid allowing my life to become Pompeii.

Signs of an impending explosion (A.K.A. Things that stress me out):

-Clutter. This is a huge one for me. For me, having a cluttered, messy house makes for a cluttered messy mind. I've found that my mood can improve tenfold if I just take a few minutes to clean house.

-Change. Truth be told, I act like an 80 year old woman. I have Werther's in my purse, I hate kids running through my yard, I love to play BINGO, and I hate change. I need routine to stay sane and so do my kids.

-Unbalanced "me" time "us" time and "family" time. I'm an ambivert (middle ground between introvert and extrovert) so having alone time is equally as important to me as having time with my family. Being a stay-at-home mom, time with my kiddos is obviously easy to come by but alone time and time with just Jake isn't quite as easy.

Setting up protective measures (A.K.A. changing or avoiding stressful triggers)

-One of the most helpful lifestyle changes I have recently made has been getting up before the kids so I can take a shower and get ready for our day before having to take care of them. This has allowed me to use Ryker's morning nap as a time to get all or at least most of my daily cleaning done instead of using it to shower. Even better, because I use that time to clean I'm able to relax in a clean, clutter-free home during the kids overlapping afternoon nap.

-Having a routine is good. It is helpful for both my kids and I to know what comes next during our day. However sometimes unexpected things happen and you just have to roll with the punches. I've found that it's so much easier to give up control and allow for change when I am consistently in the Word and putting my trust in God. This year, I'm going through a study on the Promises of God. It's been great to see things that God promises no matter what in my life changes.

-Jake and I are fortunate to have some of our best friends living across the street who also have a little one Ryker's age. A few months ago we set up a date night swap with them so on a weekly basis we take turns babysitting for each other so the other couple can go out on a date. This kills two birds with one stone, one week we get to go out on a date and have "us" time, and the next week one of us gets to go over to watch a sleeping baby (A.K.A. watch netflix) and have some alone time.

Blowing off steam (A.K.A. Ways I relax)

-Yoga. I have recently learned to love Yoga. I'm personally a huge fan of Yoga with Adrienne on youtube. I have also been attending Holy Yoga at Bethany Lutheran church on Saturday mornings with a friend. This has been an awesome opportunity to relax with yoga, have some "me" time, and learn more about God.

-Spending time with friends. I have some of the best friends and it is always so refreshing to spend time with them. Whether it's grabbing a coffee, running errands, baking cookies, or just chatting. It's nice to have a place where we can just be adults and cry, laugh, and talk with each other.

-Blogging. I've been busy lately so I haven't a whole lot of time to spend doing so, but I love writing on the blog. It's fun to write about things that are going on and I feel productive when I'm able to give advice that may help somebody. Add a warm cup of hot chocolate or tea and a sweet treat and blogging becomes even more relaxing.

-Massages. Massages are expensive so I don't treat myself to them often, but my goodness, they do wonders for my mental health! I've been to a couple of massage places in town and my favorite by far is Hands in Harmony. The atmosphere and skill is phenomenal and I've never had a masseuse try to make small talk during a massage there (bit of a pet peeve).

-Shopping. Another thing I try not to do often because it can become expensive fast, but I love to shop. It's so exciting to find a great deal and to get a cute new outfit. Plus just getting out of the house can be quite the mood booster.

What do you like to do to relax and de-stress? Do you have any good "life hacks" to avoid stress?

10 months - Ryker

Woah time, slow down. Suddenly my baby is becoming a toddler. Ryker turned 10 months on Tuesday and has started walking, standing without pulling up on anything, saying "hi", "mama", "dada", and the dreaded "no" word. This past Sunday Jake was practicing on stage for church band and I wouldn't let Ryker crawl up the stage, as I walked away with him he belted out "dada" with a big pouty face. I think Jake's heart melted on the spot. He now has 4 teeth, two on top, two on bottom, and loves to use them to eat. He will eat pretty much anything, including leftover scraps that he finds after meals in the high chairs (yuck!). He's still nursing every couple of hours during the day but it's definitely become less of a priority for him this month (😢). His night time sleep continues to be a work in progress however the past two nights he's only needed to eat once around 4:30 and 5:30. Being that he goes to bed at 6:30 I can't complain about that! He usually sleeps in until 7:30 or 8 and takes two naps during the day. I've started getting up in the morning before the kids to shower so I can use his first nap time as cleaning time and it has done wonders for both our house and my mood (clutter majorly messes with my mood). Currently, Ryker's favorite activities include: blowing raspberries, walking, playing with balls, cars, blocks, and whatever sister has. He also loves to wave hi, clap, and dance. He's slowly starting to catch on to baby sign language and will occasionally sign all done. I can't believe I only have two more months until my baby is one!

Ryker likes: sister, mommy and daddy, balls, cars, blocks, walking, and the cat.

Ryker dislikes: bubbles, long car rides, being tired, when mommy walks away.